Gatineau, Quebec, April 26, 2013 – Library and Archives Canada (LAC) is pleased to report the positive results of its strategic orientation, aimed at increasing access to Canada’s documentary heritage.

Traveling exhibitions, postings on Flickr, thematic podcasts and blog posts developed over the last few months have proven successful in giving unprecedented access to the nation’s documentary heritage to Canadians, either in person or through their computer screens.

“The success and positive reviews garnered by these exhibitions validate our organization’s commitment to make Canada’s documentary heritage more accessible than ever to people across our vast country,” said Daniel J. Caron, Deputy Head and Librarian and Archivist of Canada. “We are mindful that when archival heritage remains in vaults, it also remains silent.”

To this end, LAC has developed a suite of tools that have efficiently contributed to this unparalleled access to Canada’s heritage. In fact, Canadians showed great interest in accessing LAC’s collections on their computer screens and handheld devices, as observed by the popularity of its Flickr sets (over 350,000 views), its podcasts (over 149,000 listens) and the size of the readership of its blog (over 63,000 views). In addition to these new tools, LAC’s website receives an average of 500,000 visits monthly. The popularity of these channels, enabled by modern technology, demonstrates how promising LAC’s approach is in reaching Canadians, regardless of where they live.

In light of these results, LAC will continue to demonstrate its commitment to Canadians by producing and co-producing exhibitions with a diversity of partners, loaning items to be prominently featured in museums, galleries and other community venues, and will pursue its efforts to increase its presence in the digital world by intensifying LAC’s online production to enhance access to documentary heritage by way of technological channels.

The mandate of Library and Archives Canada is to preserve the documentary heritage of Canada for the benefit of present and future generations, and to be a source of enduring knowledge accessible to all, thereby contributing to the cultural, social and economic advancement of Canada. Library and Archives Canada also facilitates co-operation among communities involved in the acquisition, preservation and diffusion of knowledge, and serves as the continuing memory of the Government of Canada and its institutions.